Voted Best Answer
Oct 23, 2014 - 05:31 PM
You'll be understood using both, but there is a subtle difference. The confusion is that both cases are covered by "What's your name?" in English. "Como se llama" is for when you're meeting people. It's like asking "What do I call you?" It's more informal and more personal. "Cual es su nombre?" is more like asking a person's actual name. Like when making a hotel reservation or when filling out a form. Names can be repetitive in Latin American countries which leads to multiple ways to shorten/alter names and the use of nicknames. Especially in a family with several members having the same name. If your given name is Jesus you can be called Chuy, Chus, Chucho or a completely different nickname. So, it kinda makes sense that there are two ways to ask. "Como se llama" is "what do I call you" and "cual es su nombre" is "what is your given name". Hope that helped!